'A 007 licence to kill': whistleblowing exemptions dangerous
Noel Towell Exemptions from new whistleblowing laws could give Australia's intelligence agencies ''a 007 licence to kill'' approach, according to one of the nation's leading public sector corruption experts.
Man's bullying claim dismissed
Noel Towell A tribunal has ruled that public service managers can use ''robustness'' without being labelled bullies.
Indigenous staff desert public service
Noel Towell Indigenous public servants are quitting their jobs at almost twice the rate of non-indigenous colleagues.
Junior tax officers stretched: union
Noel Towell A cull of dozens of senior ATO officials has left junior staff to "match wits" against vastly more experienced corporate tax experts, according to a public sector union.
Union set to take Human Services to tribunal
Noel Towell Union threatening to take legal action in its dispute with the government's biggest department over the ''casualisation'' of its workforce.
Some humiliation by manager OK, court rules
Noel Towell A Canberra public servant who claims she was bullied by one-on-one counselling sessions with her manager has lost the latest round of her legal fight for workers’ compensation.
Hockey says 12,000 cull just a start
Noel Towell Shadow treasurer Joe Hockey says the loss of 12,000 public service jobs in Canberra would be just a "starting point" in the first two years of a Liberal government.
$30m for casuals as Department of Human Services cuts 2400 jobs
Noel Towell The federal government's biggest department is spending $30 million hiring casual and short-term labour while shedding more than 2400 of its permanent staff.
Liars, social media pests to face sack in new public service code
Noel Towell Federal public servants who lied their way into their jobs could face the sack under a shake-up of the bureaucracy's disciplinary code.
CPSU to join fight against Tax Office
Noel Towell Australia's main public service union is to join the fight against the possible sacking of four junior Melbourne tax workers.
Decision puts the 'om' into compo
Noel Towell The federal government workers' compensation fund has been ordered to pay for group meditation classes for a former Canberra public servant who has not worked in 14 years.
PS payout rorts may turn sour
Noel Towell and Ewa Kretowicz Federal public servants are being offered redundancy payouts and told they are free to return to the bureaucracy after just one week.
Public service numbers on slide
Noel Towell and Markus Mannheim The federal public service shed more than 2500 jobs last year, the first time in a decade the Commonwealth bureaucracy has shrunk.
Labor may lose leading donor
Noel Towell The federal Labor Party could lose the support of its largest financial donor for the federal election.
AFP employee targeted by South Korean agent for data
Noel Towell An Australian Federal Police staff member sacked after passing on information to spies at the South Korean consulate in Sydney has lost an unfair dismissal case.
Guns, drugs, porn open to theft
Noel Towell Vast stores of guns, drugs and other contraband seized by Customs have been left vulnerable to theft because of serious security lapses, a federal government audit has found.
Serious security lapses
Noel Towell Vast stores of guns, drugs and other contraband seized by Australia's Customs Service have been left vulnerable to theft because of serious security weaknesses, according to a federal government...
Call to toughen up PS insurer
Noel Towell Commonwealth workplace insurer Comcare needs tougher medical supervision of the 10,000 bureaucrats now claiming workers' compensation, according to a new report on the scheme.
Whistleblower laws facing fine-tuning
Noel Towell Long-awaited federal laws to protect whistleblowers should not allow government employees to go ''forum shopping'' with their complaints, according to the Public Service Commissioner.
Coalition doubles public service job growth
Noel Towell and Markus Mannheim The Coalition has again overstated by more than 90 per cent the growth of the federal public service in Canberra.
